Tecos edged in opener by walk-off HR

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The Tecolotes Dos Laredos were in line to stay within half a game of fourth place Tuesday, but they gave up a late rally and fell 6-5 on the road against the Sultanes de Monterrey off a walk-off home run.

The Tecolotes (56-50) are jockeying for playoff positioning down the stretch with the Saraperos de Saltillo (57-48) for fourth place in the Mexican Baseball League’s North division. A stretch of 11 runs in three innings late lifted the Saraperos to a 15-4 win over Union Laguna (35-66) at home Tuesday to extend their lead over the Tecos to 1.5 games.

A win Tuesday would have given the Tecolotes a chance to inch closer to Monterrey (62-42). They entered the week six games back of the Sultanes for third place and could have cut that deficit in half with a sweep. With the loss, they need to take the remaining two games of the series to get within five games.

Cesilio Pimentel (8-5, 4.94 ERA) returned to form Tuesday after struggling in his previous two outings. In three innings over one start and one relief appearance, he had allowed six earned runs and eight hits while suffering a loss. In his two prior starts, Pimentel won while lasting six innings both times with a combined five earned runs allowed. He was in line for the win Tuesday with three runs, 10 hits and four walks allowed in six innings with four strikeouts, but he ended up with a no-decision.

Designated hitter/first baseman Balbino Fuenmayor was optimistic he would return to the lineup Tuesday after missing the past nine games with the mumps. However, his stretch reached 10 straight games as he remained sidelined. Fuenmayor remains ranked fifth in the league with 28 home runs despite his extended absence.

Domonic Brown is not far behind Fuenmayor with 23 home runs, and Rudy Flores is gaining on both. Primarily playing first base during Fuenmayor’s absence, Flores hit his 21st home run Tuesday. In his past 16 games, Flores is hitting .426 with seven home runs, 15 RBIs and 14 runs. He was 1-for-5 Tuesday.

Catcher Arturo Rodriguez led the way at the plate setting a season high in hits. He was 4-for-5 with two runs and an RBI four his fourth straight multi-hit performance. Rodriguez is hitting .555 over that stretch with five runs and three RBIs. Left fielder Beder Gutierrez was 3-for-4, and Brown also had multiple hits going 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI.

After going down in order with two strikeouts to open the game, the Tecolotes fell into an early hole in the bottom of the first inning. Victor Mendoza reached on a line drive to left field, and Felix Perez came through with two outs hitting his 26th home run of the season on a liner to right field for a 2-0 lead.

Tecolotes Dos Laredos catcher Arturo Rodriguez

Tecolotes Dos Laredos catcher Arturo Rodriguez

Photo: Courtesy Of The Tecolotes Dos Laredos

Photo: Courtesy Of The Tecolotes Dos Laredos

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Tecolotes Dos Laredos catcher Arturo Rodriguez

Tecolotes Dos Laredos catcher Arturo Rodriguez

Photo: Courtesy Of The Tecolotes Dos Laredos

Tecos edged in opener by walk-off HR

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Another home run helped the Tecos even the score in the second. Flores went deep with one out to put them on the board. Arturo Rodriguez followed with a single, advanced on a walk by right fielder Roberto Lopez and scored on a single to left from Juan Martinez for a 2-2 tie. Another single from Gutierrez loaded the bases with one out, but in the next three pitches center fielder Enrique Osorio popped out to first base and shortstop Roberto Valenzuela flew out to right field.

The 23rd double of the season from Amadeo Zazueta to lead off the bottom of the third allowed the Sultanes to climb back ahead. He moved to third on a single from Tony Campana and was nearly stranded there with a pop out and a line out. However, Felix Perez drove him in with a two-out single for a 3-2 advantage.

Doubles continued to give the Tecos trouble in the fifth inning as Mendoza led off with his 30th of the year. Pimentel issued a pair of two-out walks to load the bases, but he got the next batter to ground out in two pitches to avoid any damage.

The Tecos chased Edgar Gonzalez in the fifth inning as Arturo Rodriguez led off with a single and Juan Martinez reached on an error with one out. They quickly jumped on new pitcher Daniel Cruz as Gutierrez grounded a single into left field on the first pitch he saw, and two pitches later Osorio drove in Rodriguez with a sacrifice fly to tie the game at 3-3.

Pimentel was at 88 pitches to start the bottom of the sixth and quickly gave up a lead-off double for the third straight frame. A single put runners on the corners with no outs, but Pimentel managed to work out of the jam. Third baseman Josh Rodriguez fielded a ground ball and threw out Ali Solis advancing to home. A flyout and a two-out walk loaded the bases, but Pimentel struck out Perez in six pitches to escape.

Capitalizing on the momentum, the Tecolotes grabbed their first lead in the top of the seventh inning. Rodriguez led off with a walk and Brown brought him home with a double on a fly ball to center field. Brown advanced on a ground out then scored on a single from Arturo Rodriguez to build a 5-3 advantage.

Lopez was hit by a pitch and Martinez walked to load the bases, but the Tecos were unable to add to the lead getting two outs in the next three pitches. Gutierrez failed to get a hit for the first time hitting a ground ball for a force out at home, and Osorio flied out to leave the bases loaded.

The failure to capitalize came back to bite the Tecolotes immediately. After a walk and a single, a two-out double from Zazueta evened the game at 5-5.

The Tecos struggled to generate any offense from there getting just a single from Josh Rodriguez in the eighth and a walk from Lopez in the ninth. After Lopez’s walk, Martinez lined out into an unassisted double play by the second baseman to retire the side.

Zazueta was slated at the bottom of the order but was the hero all night for Monterrey. Already 4-for-4 with two doubles, two RBIs and a run, he hit a walk-off solo home run in the ninth inning for his fifth hit. Alejandro Barraza (1-1) allowed the home run. It marked just the second run he has allowed all season raising his ERA from 0.75 to 1.38.

The Tecolotes and Sultanes continue their series at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday.